Back to square one for Belfast as businesses brace for new coronavirus restrictions

Belfast has been here before. More than four months after Northern Ireland’s lockdown was lifted, the capital – along with the rest of the country – finds itself back on the brink. As cases continue to surge, with more and more people being hospitalised across the state, Stormont has broken rank with the rest of the UK and opted to take immediate action.

Many, though, are conflicted. “It’s going to wipe out our trade,” Richie Keenan, a pub owner outside of the city centre, says of the new restrictions. As of Friday evening, his establishment – which has been serving local residents for 146 years – will once again be forced to close its doors, this time for four weeks or longer.

Restaurants, bars and cafes will also be following suit. Only those that can offer takeaway or delivery services will be allowed to continue operating. Responsible for many of the recent outbreaks in Northern Ireland, the hospitality sector is now paying a high price and finds itself being placed back into deep freeze for the coming weeks.

For Richie, manager of Hatfield House on the Ormeau Road, the measures are “completely justified” if they’re able to flatten the curve and save lives, but the concern is when this “in-out” cycle ends.

“We might get through this lockdown, but is there another one coming?” he tells The Independent. “The chief medical officer was talking about another one before Christmas. This is all worry and uncertainty, which is the enemy of trade. Every time we think we get to grips with something, the goalposts are moved. That just makes it impossible to operate at the minute.”

Just down the road, beyond the faded green of Ormeau Park, Soul Food Cafe is similarly coming to terms with the new measures that are being enforced across the country. “I’m currently working out if it’s viable to do delivery,” says owner Christine Naylor. “But with so many takeaway places around here, at the moment it’s not looking good, so it’s likely we’ll have to shut down again.”

In this part of the city – a melting pot of classes, ethnicities, politics and religious backgrounds – much of the local economy centres around the independent businesses that line the street. But as was the case in March, the new restrictions threaten the very heart of this thriving community, endangering jobs and the livelihoods of many.

“I’m playing the long game,” Christine tells The Independent. “Can I be here in six months? Hopefully fingers crossed I will be. We’re not at breaking point but I’ve got to be very careful in the months ahead.” She predicts that she’ll know where her business is truly at by March of next year, once all the relevant financial support has come to an end and her cafe is left to fend for itself.

“I was pleasantly surprised how much we were getting by,” she says. “But it’s a false sense of security. There will be trouble.”

As for now, authorities are working on extending a support scheme set up in Derry City for other Northern Irish businesses impacted by enhanced Covid-19 regulations. It is understood the initiative agreed by Stormont will double the original payment rates, meaning small businesses will receive £800 per week, medium-sized firms £1,200 a week, and larger businesses £1,600.

Still, there is concern that these sort of payments won’t be enough. Such costs may not fully cover those companies with a large number of staff to pay, meaning there could, in theory, be no money left for rent, electricity and other utilities.

“It’s a drop in the ocean if your staff bills aren’t covered,” Claire Hanna, a Social Democratic and Labour Party MP for Belfast South, tells The Independent. She warns that there will also be certain businesses who are being overlooked for financial support, simply because they aren’t being forced to close.

She points to the example of a nearby dry cleaners, just around the corner from her office, which has seen a huge drop in trade due to the general decline in office life and the falling demand for events such as weddings.

“A business like that doesn’t get any intervention,” Claire says. “If you have neatly fitted into the schemes, I think the support has been good. But the gaps have been very wide and clearly the support has been getting less generous, so people have less of a cushion. Maybe back in March you had a bit of cash in the bank to fall back on, but now there’s no fat left to trim.”

Back in April, research conducted by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) in Belfast suggested that six in ten of the city’s smaller companies had been forced to close, with almost two-fifths raising concerns that they would never open again. Although “those worst fears haven’t been realised”, says the FBS, the situation across the north remains “very fragile”.

“The amount of people claiming unemployment-related benefits in Northern Ireland doubled between March and June of this year, and there are fears that this will increase further once the furlough scheme draws to a close at the end of this month, particularly if businesses aren’t properly supported,” Roger Pollen, head of external affairs for FSB in Belfast, tells The Independent.

Amid such bleak forecasts, some in the city have argued that the new restrictions are doing more damage than good – especially for hairdressers and beauticians, which, as close-contact services, are also being forced to close for the four-week period.

“They’re not necessary at all,” Cian Moran, manager of JFH Social barbers, tells The Independent. He says that he served one individual who later tested positive for Covid-19, but that none of his staff or other customers were infected.

“That shows we're taking it seriously, that all the precautions have been taken. I don’t think doing this is necessary because you can tell nothing is coming through. We’re following the rules to stop the spread. I don’t think there’s a lot more we could be doing. We’re jumping through hoops.”

Christine says that the restrictions shouldn’t be so all-encompassing, arguing that daytime cafes such as hers – “look at my customer base, it’s very mature and sensible,” she laughs – shouldn’t be targeted by the authorities. The issue, she adds, lies elsewhere.

“The off licenses… don’t get me started,” she says. “You can buy as much as you want and then go party at home. That isn’t right. It needs to be more nuanced. Hospitality is a very varied sector. There’s us, the sensible places, and then you get the bars – all very different, different customer base, different behaviours.”

Back in Hatfield House, Richie has accepted his fate. “Now’s not the time to have an argument about closing or not,” he says. “That ship has sailed.” His immediate focus is on winding up his pub’s delivery service again – not because it’s profitable in any way, but because it keeps his employees in a job.

“More than anything, we’re worried about our staff. Being closed pales in comparison whenever I look at what’s happening to the people – and we’re a young team – who make up the family of this place. How these restrictions affect their lives, and what comes next for them – we’re more concerned by that.

“At the end of the day, it’s all about looking out for another.”